The Art Research Center (ARC), Ritsumeikan University, is pleased to share that the Shinsō Culture Digital Archive--adopted as an international joint research project by the ARC-iJAC in FY 2024 and FY 2025--has been featured on the blog of the North American Coordinating Council on Japanese Library Resources (NCC).  

The Shinsō Culture Digital Archive investigates Japan's modern clothing culture through the concept of shinsō--the integration of body and clothing. Developed as part of the long-term Minpaku Costume Database Project (MCD), the archive is led by Dr. Haruko Takahashi (Visiting Researcher, National Museum of Ethnology) and realized through a cross-disciplinary collaboration that includes ARC faculty member Dr. Keiko Suzuki (Graduate School of Letters, Ritsumeikan University).  

Among its four databases, the NCC blog highlights two in particular: the Chronology of Japanese Clothing Culture in the Modern Age Database, which reconstructs everyday dress and perceptions of the body from the Meiji Restoration to the end of World War II using contemporaneous newspapers, magazines, and catalogs; and the Image Database of Japanese Clothing Culture in the Modern Age, which leverages detailed illustrations from serialized novels and other materials to provide rare visual insights into styles and appearances of the time.  

The ARC has supported the project by launching a dedicated portal site within the ARC Virtual Institute to enhance accessibility to these interdisciplinary resources both in Japan and internationally, aiming to broaden global engagement with Japan's clothing history and material culture. 

Learn more about the project in the NCC's blog post "Japanese Studies Spotlight: Decoding Clothing Culture with the Shinsō Digital Archive," co-authored by Dr. Haruko Takahashi and Dr. Keiko Suzuki.

Explore portal site of the Shinso Culture Digital Archive in the ARC Virtual Institute: https://www.arc.ritsumei.ac.jp/lib/vm/shinsou/